Before you get those judging caps on, let it be known that there's more to this story than meets the eye. It was actually the girl who opened up about the rather unusual set-up, taking to Reddit to explain how the couple had reached that point.

She wrote: “My boyfriend and I have been living together for two years. I'm naturally a homebody. But, when we first stated dating, I kind of had a drinking problem. After moving in together, I was still wrestling with alcoholism and stayed out a handful of times (about five times in a year) until 3AM.

“Frequently, I'd irresponsibly allow my phone to die while I continued drinking. Initially, I didn't understand how problematic it was because I wasn't cheating and I was literally half a block away from our apartment and in the same bar that I went to every each time.

“Every time, my boyfriend expressed that he hated this. He hated the staying out late and he hated the dead phone. He told me it was unacceptable. Eventually, it seemed like such a big deal to my boyfriend that I just sucked it up, stopped staying out late, and stopped drinking.

“Fast forward now, it's over a year since I last stayed out or really drank. My boyfriend got a new set of friends and now he stays out mostly every weekend until 3-5am. I don't ask who's he's with or what he's doing before he leaves. I don't bother him while he's out. I want him to have his space because humans deserve that.

“But it still bothers me that he's late only because of the double standard that he's set in our relationship. He says that he deserves the benefit of the doubt because 'he'll respond to a call or text at any time'. But, as I stated previously, I almost never call while he's out unless it's an emergency because we live together.

“At first, it pissed me off. Then, I thought I should just calmly explain to him why I disagree with his actions. But, after almost a year, he still does it. He tells me he'll be home by a certain time and doesn't make it. When I him out on how he treats me for coming home late, he backpedals. I'm tired of wasting my breath. So, tonight when he left at midnight, I made a proposition. If either one us aren't home 4am, we have to give the other $50 and no one can be angry.”

The post concluded: “My reasoning is that he's either going to tire of paying the $50 and come home on time or afford me the same level of understanding for occasionally staying out until the bars close.”

However, the poster went on to ask the Reddit community: “Am I the asshole? Is he? Are we both assholes?”

Credit: Pixabay

So what are your thoughts on the matter? The answer from the Reddit community was pretty unanimous, with many people calling the move 'childish'.

One commenter wrote: “NTA, but this $50 thing is a bad idea, it sounds like it's going to breed resentment, not actually encourage him to get home on time. You don't seem to be able to properly communicate your feelings to each other, or he just doesn't care how you feel.”

Meanwhile another declared: “ESH Sounds like a really strained relationship in the first place.”

Some people didn't hold back at all, with one person saying: “This is a really stupid and childish game both of you are playing… It sounds like you are trying to get revenge. I'd just save my money and get rid of you.” Don't hold back, fella!

Public opinion or not, seems like this couple are playing a dangerous game. If he's getting charged cash for breaking his curfew, we can only imagine what he'd get if he copied this guy.

Daisy Phillipson

Daisy is a UK-based freelance journalist with too many opinions. She loves everything film and music-related and has a track record writing for Little White Lies, BWRC, and Film Daily. Contact her at [email protected]